How Electronics Played a Part in Carl Jocumsen's First Bassmaster Elite Win
When Bassmaster Elite Series pro Carl Jocumsen hoisted the trophy over his head at the 2019 Cherokee Casino Tahlequah Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller, it was apparent to everyone how much it meant to the Australian angler.
As the first Aussie to fish competitively in the U.S., Jocumsen has had his share of ups and downs, with plenty of challenges along the way.
The event at Lake Tenkiller was, in many ways, a microcosm of his career. The lake was a last-minute venue change for BASS, and the bite was tough, to say the least. It promised to be yet another challenge for Jocumsen as he looked to finish the regular season strong.
“Lake Tenkiller was the ultimate challenge. No one had prepared for that lake since it wasn’t initially on the schedule. That was complicated by some of the most difficult conditions you could get when it comes to bass fishing,” noted Jocumsen.
Changing Conditions Required Increased Mapping Usage
“We had falling water, unseasonably hot air temperatures, and only about two days of practice.” But if Jocumsen has proven one thing over his career, it’s that he’s at his best when adversity is at its height. Rather than get caught up in the questions and unknowns around the tournament, Jocumsen quickly crafted a plan using his LakeMaster mapping.
“Once I saw the conditions and the dropping water, I referred to my LakeMaster map a lot during those few practice days,” noted Jocumsen. “You have a plan in your head, and day one, you want to try as many different options as you can. The water was in the bushes and up on the banks, and that was the downfall for everyone because while that bite was strong during practice. It seemed to disintegrate as the tournament wore on, and the water dropped."
"From my experience, with falling water, the fish start to relate to steep vertical breaks. I got a few bites in the bushes but based on that knowledge, I looked at my map to find the steepest spots, went to them and got enough bites to gain confidence in my approach.”
“I mapped out and marked quite a few spots,” explained Jocumsen. “On day one of the tournament, I started running what I considered the best spots and worked through them as efficiently as possible using my Minn Kota Ultrex™.
360 Imaging for Pinpoint Lure Placement
It quickly became clear that my Humminbird 360 Imaging would play a critical role in my tournament as I was able to make pinpoint casts to the best structure on each spot. Without that information, I would have wasted a lot of casts. I knew every bit was going to matter in this tournament, so being efficient was paramount.”
Although day two was challenging, Jocumsen wasn’t discouraged and still had time to make up for it on day three and four. “After two and a half days of practice and the first couple days of the tournament, I finally figured out five areas that had fish,” noted Jocumsen. “I was able to hit them all several times, so I would rotate through them throughout the day.”
“I found this special spot on day three with my Humminbird 360,” said Jocumsen.
“In fact, I was about to leave the spot, but the 360 picked up a tree on the very edge of my field of view and I caught a keeper off that tree at 2 p.m., which gave me the lead. It was a super magical spot and I knew I wanted to return to break it down even further on the final day.”
Final Day: Sealing the Deal
Jocumsen returned to that exact spot on the final day and caught three that averaged about four pounds each while Spot-Locked within seven minutes, which set him up for his victory. (Check out the video below)
Although Jocumsen may have made his win look easy, he had zero tournament experience on Lake Tenkiller and had to embrace adversity with tough fishing conditions. The combination of falling water and high temps forced Jocumsen to search for specific features to be able to find fish.
“It's all about getting those one or two bites that give you that feeling that only an angler knows. You’ll get a certain bite where things change in your mind. That's one of the bites that is tournament changing and that you know you need to work very hard on replicating. I got a couple of those bites offshore on areas I found with LakeMaster mapping. I spent the next few days dialing it in. The goal for me was to find as many of those scenarios as I can. By day four of the tournament after almost seven days of fishing. I committed to those spots and never touched another area.”
Jocumsen’s knowledge and application of Humminbird electronics, particularly Hummbird 360 Imaging and high-definition mapping of LakeMaster, played a big part in his first Elite win.
“I’ve been using Humminbird electronics since I was twelve years old. My first boat had Humminbird electronics on it,” said Jocumsen.
“I truly would be lost without my 360 and I’m so grateful for the support and help I’ve received along the way from Humminbird and Minn Kota. This is a dream come true.”
Congratulations to Carl on this well-deserved accomplishment and memorable moment that we will never forget. Not only was this his first Elite Series victory, but it was also his 35th birthday and less than a month before he and his fiance, Kayla, were set to be married!
We cannot wait to see what successes the future holds for the Bassmaster Elite Champion. #FearMyHeart
Get an inside look at how Carl Jocumsen uses his Humminbird 360 Imaging in this video and article.
